Not So Normal
by oOo KitKat oOo
Summary: Sunstreaker's not with the other Autobots because he's with me. Why? I'm an ordinary human-an orphan-who was trying to have fun in Disneyland... until I saw the meteor. Now I have to reunite Sunny with his comrades without being killed by the Decepticons.
1. Chapter 1

**First Transformers fanfic EVER! I hope you guys enjoy it. I wanted to wait until I'd also completed my second chapter, but I couldn't really wait. This sudden idea just hit me because I was moping around in my house. I'm not allowed to go on my field trip to Disneyland, so I decided to start out by giving my character some time to enjoy one of the happiest places on Earth. Criticism is helpful and welcomed, but please, nothing that will hurt me and delay me in updating for those who _do_ enjoy the story. Mind you, I turned fourteen only recently and while I may not be the best writer, I'd like to give this story a try. Also, I'd like to thank my friend, Reese, who was happy to take her time in editing this chapter.**

**I do not own Transformers. Only my OC.**

Chapter 1

She believed that, somehow, an incredible power was hidden out there in the universe. She knew that it existed and believed that it would someday meet her face-to-face, finally revealing to her its true intentions for her existence. After all, Katrina Danielle Montez was one of those people who believed that everyone was born for a reason. But she had yet to find out whether said power was a good thing… or if it absolutely hated her.

* * *

><p>(Kat's POV)<p>

I groaned as I felt arms trying to shake me awake. Ever since the accident, I haven't been able to sleep peacefully. The nightmares wouldn't let me.

…fire everywhere…

…being squeezed tightly by metal fists…

…blood-red lights highlighting my horrified expression…

I curled myself even more tightly inside my blanket, but the shaking became more persistent as the owner of the hands growled, "Kat, you better wake up." I cracked an eye open in annoyance.

"…Or what?"

"I'll dye all your whites orange."

Agitatedly, I turned my head to the window, watching the redwoods and grassy plains zoom by. "We're on a bus, possibly another two-hundred miles from the nearest Laundromat."

"I'll steal twenty bucks."

"Is that all you've got?"

"I'll kiss you." My head snapped to the side at that particularly scarring comment. I smacked the no good bastard.

"Ryan, what the hell?"

You know what the ass did? He shrugged—shrugged!—and went on nonchalantly, like he _didn't _just say something that made me want to puke. "I had to wake you up _somehow_." Total. Ass. Sighing, I tossed my blanket on my unsuspecting "bus buddy" and straightened out my wrinkled, red t-shirt.

"John."

"Here!"

"Hannah."

"Present!"

I groaned. "I guess that was a good thing. Ms. Karl's doing roll-call."

The best thing since the accident was taking place right now; my field trip to Disneyland. Everyone, whether you're in kindergarten or college, looks forward to the last day of school. Unless you're one of those people, like me, who finds friends and adventure while receiving their education. There _are_ kids out there who actually enjoy the prison that is school. Is it because of the teachers? No. Is it because of the guys? Um, definite no. Is it because of the work? _Hell_ no and I'll tell you right now that I absolutely _hate_ homework. No, the people that actually like school are the people that have an even harder time at home.

"Zack."

"Here!"

"Leo."

"Yo!" Leo's such a dork… sorry. I couldn't resist.

Anyway, yeah, my life's been tough. I've been raised as an orphan, ever since… ever since last year. I've been abandoned by my dad who didn't give a shit about me or my well-being when I was younger, and I've experienced hell. My mom was driving to Tranquility, Nevada that day; she never made it. The police came knocking on my door the next morning, told me that my mother had died in car accident. Apparently, the offending driver had run a red light, but I was suspicious. Why... because every night since that day, I've had the same dream.

* * *

><p><em>(Dream)<em>

_Kenny G. played softly from the car radio. Melinda Montez was quietly humming to the music as she drove the streets towards Tranquility in her silver, 2004 Acura TL. Beside her in the passenger's seat, I was staring out the window, looking out at all the plantation and livestock. The sky was beginning to change into that light gray, letting the people know that rain would soon fall._

_I loved my mother to death. All my life, it's been me and her; no dad and no siblings. I've always wanted an older brother, someone who I could have friendly arguments with, but who'd also have my back. Mom would always tease me that I was hard to take care of without having to deal with another child; we'd laugh after the conversation._

_The sky was turning darker, the clouds turning black and growing larger. It started raining, harder and harder. I was getting nervous and I heard a raven in the distance. The trees around me were shaking in distress from the wind and I knew something bad was going to happen. I glanced at my mom worriedly, but she continued to hum. That was Melinda Montez, not worried about too much and always staying strong._

_I heard the car the same time my mom's eyes went wide. I screamed._

_"Mom!"_

_The Acura continued to tumble across the road for a few meters before coming to a complete stop. I dragged myself out and away from the wreckage. I felt pain, my breathing labored and my head badly bashed. I couldn't stand the white spots that danced across my vision. Mom, I thought. I shakily got to my feet and stumbled over to the destroyed vehicle. Subconsciously, I heard an angry revving drive further and further away._

_"Mom?" I choked out. I grabbed the door handle and yanked and yanked. It flew open and I collapsed as I let out a sob. My mother laid broken and lifeless, blood pooling around her body. I tried to help, tried to pull her out of the car, but my hands would go through her. I couldn't touch her at all… couldn't touch her, feel her, or even help her. Not only did I figure out that this was a dream, but that this is what had happened to my mother. The police were partly right, except that there wasn't a traffic light in sight. What I did hear, however, was an angry revving, getting closer and closer. When I turned my helpless self around, I saw a police cruiser, and I saw nasty dents in its headlights…_

_…This was the car that had killed my mom._

_I was devastated, I was pitiful, and I was enraged. How dare he come back? How dare he come back after he'd killed my mother? What did he want? Did he want to apologize? The damage was already done! Before I could even shriek a word, the car made a strange whirring and clanking noise._

_"Fraggin' fleshling!" And I assure you that wasn't me._

_"W-what?" I asked in disbelief. A living gray machine that had white plates reading "Police" on its arms was looking very menacing. Standing in front of me was a fucking, metal monster. Dammit, it was the police car! The police car was fucking alive! It pierced me with its blood red eyes and I swear it was looking right at me._

_Barely a second later, I felt nauseous and crushed. I tried to scream, but I could barely breathe. A nagging at the back of my mind told me to stay calm, to not look down. And what did I do? I looked down! I looked down and saw that I was fucking twenty feet or higher from the ground! I panicked and whipped my head around, accidentally looking back at the metal killer. I'd never felt so afraid. It raised its free hand and blasted what was left of the car and my mom._

_"You're dead, fleshbag."_

* * *

><p>(Kat's POV)<p>

"Katrina."

Bingo, that's me. My name's Katrina Danielle Montez, but I prefer Kat. I'm seventeen and—

"Katrina?"

Oops. "Here! Sorry, Ms. Karl, I was a bit distracted."

"Don't worry about it, Sweetie. It's understandable since it's loud on the bus. Disneyland _is_ the happiest place on Earth." Ms. Karl finished off with a wink. I chuckled as I combed my fingers through my hair, trying to remove as many tangles as I could.

I'm part of the orphanage's orchestra group and proud to say that I play the violin. Not as good as Mitch, but awesome enough. All of the students on the bus right now are coming in from Reno, Nevada. It'll be such a relief for the other orphans and me. I'm being honest when I say that life hasn't been so kind lately. Damn, I'm being such a motor-mouth.

Reaching into my backpack, I pulled out my iPod and let Paramore, Linkin Park, and All Time Low blast through my ears for the rest of the trip.

If I'd known about what was coming or had any idea about the events that were going to take place, I can't say that I still wouldn't have gone. I mean, who can pass up the opportunity to go to Disneyland? Then again, I had no idea that cars could talk.

The good news… I finished the day—and school year—with another perfect attendance.


	2. Chapter 2

**You guys have been _awesome_! The reviews have kept me writing, but I do apologize if the next chapter doesn't come until _after_ the Thanksgiving Weekend. I may need that time to write the next chapter and I only see my editor at school. Anyway, Reese has also agreed to become my full-time Beta for my story and I'm so grateful; you guys wouldn't believe how many mistakes I don't catch after I'm done with the first draft. Thank you, Reese!**

** I do not own Transformers. Only my OC.**

Chapter 2

Sometimes, being the leader of an alien race was harder than it looked. Optimus Prime, commander of the Autobots, was a humble and noble mech. He was loyal to his men, admired by many and believed in the freedom of all sentient beings. Just being alive brought the Autobots hope in the war against the Decepticons. There wasn't much that would keep Prime from protecting the human planet from his enemies. What _did_ have Optimus on edge were the lives of his soldiers, being naturally damaged by something even the best medic in the _universe_ couldn't fix. That's why he was currently having a conversation with Ratchet, while working in his designated quarters, over a comm link.

**::How is Sideswipe recovering?::** Apparently, the situation was more serious than he'd thought; he could practically hear the Autobot medic whir in frustration. On the other side of the N.E.S.T base, the CMO was pacing around the med bay with purpose.

**::Not well, Prime. He's unconscious and his repair programming is working overtime. There's something wrong and I'm afraid there is nothing I can do to help.:: **Ratchet glanced over at the occupied medical berth to make another examination of his patient. Sideswipe had gone into emergency stasis not long ago and the warrior's collapse had worried even Ironhide.

**::You must not think like that, Ratchet. You are Chief Medical Officer for a reason. If anyone can save Sideswipe, old friend, it's you.:: **

**::Optimus, Sideswipe is not suffering from any inflicted wounds. The lack of Sunstreaker's presence seems to be taking its toll and his spark continues to fluctuate without any communication from his twin. I'm beginning to fear that the worst has happened to Sunstreaker.:: **This revelation caused the Autobot commander to stop his work and look up from his datapad in surprise. All Cybertronians knew the consequences of twin sparks being separated for too long. It would start out as a slight discomfort at first, but the pain would eventually grow. If not handled in time, the worst consequence was death.

**::We must be calm, Ratchet. If it were possible that Sunstreaker were offline, Sideswipe would have followed soon after.:: **

Ratchet angrily slammed both of his hands onto his desk while venting heavily. **::While he may not be at the stage of offlining, Optimus, Sideswipe has apparently been hiding his discomfort. Stubborn glitch should have told someone sooner!::**

Before Optimus could reply, a sharp alarm was sounding throughout the base. Captain William Lennox burst into the Prime's office with Ironhide following urgently behind him.

"What is the emergency, Captain Lennox?" asked Optimus as he set his datapad down and stood up from his chair.

"The N.E.S.T satellites have caught motion on their radars. Something just entered Earth's atmosphere," responded Will. He glanced at the weapons specialist.

Ironhide nodded before adding, "It's a Cybertronian. We caught a brief scan of the signature, but we can't identify the faction."

Optimus was quick to catch up with the situation. "Acknowledged. Ironhide, you will be taking Jolt, Arcee, Skids, and Mudflap. Captain Lennox, would you accompany them with Chief Master Sergeant Epps? Ratchet and I will remain here to ensure the safety of Sideswipe and the base. What is the expected landing coordinates?"

Will's response was quick. "Anaheim, California."

* * *

><p>(Kat's POV)<p>

The open shutters of my guestroom window cast rays of light across my face, and I woke up very disoriented inside my hotel suite. Guess I'd forgotten to close them last night. Only a few weeks ago, I discovered that I could sleep dreamlessly if I exhausted myself into unconsciousness. Too bad I wouldn't know about the damage it caused me until later.

Throwing the covers aside, I rolled out of bed so I could do my morning stretches. As a musician, it was important to have flexible muscles and since I was a violinist, I wanted to exercise my arms especially. I remember my first practice session when I was twelve. My arms had cramping spasms for a week! Ouch. Speaking of practice sessions, today the orchestra would be having another practice run of all the Disney songs we had to play during the Disney Parade.

"Oh shoot! I forgot what time we were supposed to meet up." I murmured to myself as I sat cross-legged on the floor. Reaching into the pocket of my PJ bottoms, I pulled out my phone and dialed. It rang three times before someone picked up.

"Hello?"

"Morning, Ms. Karl."

"Good morning to you, too, Katrina. Is something wrong?"

"It's nothing that serious. I was just calling to see what time the orchestra was supposed to meet up."

"We meet at ten o'clock, Sweetie. You do realize it's nine, right?"

"Yeah, I know. I'll just take a quick shower and grab a granola bar, it won't take that long."

"That's fine. Have you been practicing your piece?"

"Yes, but I still can't believe you decided to put me as one of the leads. What about Mitch?"

"Mitch wouldn't be able to pull off everything and I decided that now would be the perfect chance to put you in the spotlight. Besides, Mitch wouldn't be able to pull off a girl character, don't you think?" I giggled.

"Yeah, you're right. Well, I'm going to take a shower now. Thanks, Ms. Karl."

"Alright, Kat. Bye!"

I ended the call and got up from the floor. Heading over to my duffel bag, I decided that today, I'd wear some plain jeans, a tank top, and throw my orange hoodie on top. I rummaged around for my essentials before getting up and going to the bathroom. The shower was nice and I was grateful that the hot water continued to last for a while, but there wasn't a lot of time to waste; I stepped out after ten minutes. The bathroom had become a bit too warm for my taste, so I opened the door to release some steam, and then got myself dressed. Afterwards, I wiped some of the fog off the mirror in order to see my reflection.

My black hair was still wet, but was brushed back so that it ended at mid-waist. I didn't look as tired anymore, but slightly shaded rings were beginning to form underneath my dark brown eyes; it was a good thing that my olive skin made it almost unnoticeable. Checking my phone, it was already 9:45a.m. I quickly dried my choppily cut hair, grabbed my purse and a protein bar, and picked up my violin and music before leaving the room.

For the parade, everyone was going to be dressed up as a helping Disney character with the exception of the lead roles. For example, I saw that Dora and Charlie were dressed as Disney fairies with a couple of other girls, and some of the boys, like John and Brock, were dressed as the Seven Dwarves. Mitch and I were the leads and he would be performing one of the songs—I think it was "I've Got A Dream"—from Tangled. I couldn't stop laughing when I saw his costume of Flynn Ryder. As for my part, I would be playing "A Whole New World" from Aladdin. I'll give you one guess on who I have to dress up as. Yeah, I'll be dressing up as Jasmine during the parade. I really can't wait.

Being the oldest orphan at the orphanage had its perks and advantages. While practicing, the E string on my violin broke—again—so Ms. Karl sent me out for a replacement around noon. I took the Ford Expedition that we'd rented from a decent car rental and decided to take a look around town while I was running the errand. I searched for hours trying to find a single music shop, but came up empty. More than once, I stopped at a local bookstore, grabbed a meal from Burger King, and refueled the car… but no music shop. I even went as far as to enter a disgusting and unsanitary gas station five miles from Anaheim for directions, but apparently, this place had no appreciation for music. I checked my phone again to see that it was already 5:30p.m. I scrolled through my contacts until I found Ms. Karl's number.

"Katrina! Do you have any idea what time it is? You've been gone for hours!" Ms. Karl exclaimed. I groaned in reply.

"I know, Ms. Karl, but this place doesn't have one music shop in sight. I'm sorry, but I haven't gotten the strings." I heard Ms. Karl sigh over the phone.

"Don't worry about the strings. I'm pretty sure the parade conductors will have some extra, but I want you to come back to the hotel." I was hesitant before I spoke.

"Actually, I was wondering if I could go around the town for a bit. Do you mind if I stay out late?" There was a silent pause until I received an answer.

"If I let you stay out longer, will you promise to get at least enough sleep for tomorrow?"

"Of course I will! I wouldn't miss a chance to perform at Disneyland for the world!"

"Okay then. You can go around town some more, but remember to call 911 if anything happens!"

"I'll be fine, Ms. Karl, trust me. Bye."

"Bye, Sweetheart." This time, I waited until she ended the call first. I recall seeing a sign directing which freeway would lead to the Anaheim Mountains. I wanted to take a little hike in the forest to clear my head, so I drove until I saw the trees. Sighing, I made my way to a forest campsite for a breather. Nothing made me feel better and relaxed than stargazing away from reality.

I parked the car in the visitor's parking lot and hopped down. The sound of crickets chirping and the smell of pine from the woods made me lose myself from the world. My motto is, "When stressed out, climb a tree." Enlighteningly so, I sought for a tree that was a nice distance into the woods until I spotted the perfect pine that held a great view of the mountains. Grabbing the lowest branch, I pulled myself up and began to climb. For the record, I also might have made it to the top if it weren't for the rock that smacked me in the back. Next thing I knew, I lost my balance, screamed, and fell eight feet to the ground.

"Aw, c'mon!" I yelled. Grumbling, I pulled myself up so that I was kneeling on the ground. "Ouch." At least nothing was broken. I'd probably be a bit bruised in the morning, but nothing serious.

Suddenly, my vision was taken by a bright blue flash. I was blinded for a few seconds and when I was able to see again, I couldn't really comprehend what the object laying in front of me was. The jagged, metallic-colored stone was actually pretty big. I think it was just my eyes, but it looked like blue sparks were fizzing around the rock. Curious, I was actually stupid enough to pick it up; I yelped in pain because my whole body suddenly felt as if an electrical current was flowing through me, and I dropped the rock in astonishment. Frightened, I backed away from it as fast as possible and squeaked as I hugged myself.

"H-holy sh-sh-shit!" And that's when I saw the meteor. It streaked across the sky, heading towards me. At first, I thought it was just another star in the night sky, but it kept gradually getting bigger. When I became absolutely sure that I'd become fried chicken if I didn't move, I grabbed the jagged shard and ran to the car like a bat out of hell. The blazing asteroid zipped across the tops of the trees, but eventually hit the ground with a crash. If I was stupid before, I was now mentally insane. I shoved the keys in the ignition, started the engine, and began to drive to the crash site.

A large gouge left a pathway to the steaming meteor. Imagine my surprise when I exited my car, jogged up to the crater, and found that the meteor wasn't a meteor at all. No, it was shell that I could clearly see was casing something; a huge chunk of the false space rock revealed something gray and—metal? I jumped into the crater out of impulse and slowly approached.

_Sunstreaker_.

I froze. What was that? Wildly searching, I found nobody else around me and continued towards the object. I hadn't thought that; didn't even know what Sunstreaker meant. I took a last glance behind me over my shoulder, but when I turned back around, I shrieked. The meteor casing was dissolving and when I say dissolving, I mean that the meteor casing looked like it was pixilation that was disappearing. Almost like a hologram disappearing pixel by pixel. The form that was left behind scared the shit out of me.

It looked like a robot, complete with a metal body and metal limbs. I ghosted my hand around what I thought was the head, but two bright blue—I think they were eyes?—lights suddenly came on. The head turned so that the lights came to rest on me. I was paralyzed in shock and it seemed like so was the metal being. One after one, images of my dream suddenly flooded through my mind; the police car revving angrily in front of me, it transforming into a giant monster, and those blood red lights. That snapped me out of it.

I screamed, "What the fuck?" the same time the living machine yelled, "Get your dirty servos off me you filthy organic!"

Sadly, I wouldn't understand the insult until later.


	3. Chapter 3

**Yes! I've got the third chapter updated! A head's up to all those readers that this could _possibly_ be the only chapter I'll update over the Thanksgiving Weekend. Also, thank you to all of you who have reviewed! You wouldn't believe how shaky I am with this story since it _is_ the first ever Transformers fic I've written. You guys have been such a amazing audience! :) Virtual cookies to all! Another thing, the end of this chapter might confuse you, but I'll give a virtual teddy bear to those who can guess what's happening to Kat. It, in my opinion, is definitely a brain-twister. I got the inspiration from a comic I saw while browsing through deviantart.**

**Again, thank you to Reese, who revised this chapter for you all. It wouldn't be up without her!**

**I do not own Transformers. Only my OC. **

Chapter 3

(Kat's POV)

My heart was racing, but that didn't stop me from running like The Flash. If you ever get the chance to meet a giant, living creature made out of metal, I'd bet my entire life's savings that you'd be staring like, "OMG, this is the coolest thing that's ever happened in my entire life! Excuse me, Mr. robot-that-can-squish-me, but can you stand still so I can take a picture of you on my iPhone?" Oh yes, I can see it now. Then again, I don't have a life's savings, so there's nothing for me to lose if you're one of those people who'd _run for your life! _That's what normal people do, but survey shows that a majority of people are idiots that don't give a crap about becoming parents or something, so long as there's a good reason to die. I, for one, do not think that meeting a _live robot_ is a good enough reason to be blasted into a million pieces. That's why I'm currently trying to get out of here so that I can live to be the awesome grandmother I know I will be.

"Get back here, femme! Tell me the location of the Autobots!" Strange noises were being made behind me and I was sure that the robot was getting up.

_Oh hell no, I don't want to _die!_ I want to live, I want to _live!_ God, my inner voice is such a _girl_ sometimes._

"Crap, crap, _crap, crap,_ CRAP!" I yelled. I scrambled to get out of the crater, but ended up falling as the ground shook. Frantically, I pulled at the loose roots in order to assist myself and soon, I was running through the trees. From what I was able to observe back there, that robot had some serious length in those legs. Who knew when he'd be able to catch up… and possibly step on me? At this rate, I'd make it to my car while that monster was still getting up—at least I'd hoped… until I tripped. Hysterically, I looked up to see that the behemoth was already standing above me with its arms crossed over its chest. I swear it was _glaring_ at me!

"Running was a stupid move, fleshy." Seriously? Suddenly overwhelmed with panic and anger, I stood up and returned the glare with a burning one of my own.

"Who're you calling fleshy? I'm a _human_ for God's sake so get that through your thick metal head, you rusty tin can!" Okay, I admit that wasn't the best move, but that was my mouth talking without me thinking.

"Rusty? Did you just call me _rusty?_ Fleshy, I could blast you into a million tiny bits in less than a nano-klik!" Just as I was about to mouth-off without the consent of my brain, that same fleeting voice resounded throughout my head.

_Sideswipe_.

Unknowingly, I repeated the word out loud. "Sideswipe?"

_Sideswipe. Sunstreaker._

Apparently, the phrase meant something more serious to the giant robot than it did to me. Next thing I knew, I was being picked up and brought right in front of its face. Didn't this metal-head know anything about personal space?

"What do you know about Sideswipe? Where is my brother?" the robot snapped at me. This _thing_ had a _brother?_

"I d-don't kn-know. And who the hell are _you?_" I stammered.

It huffed in impatience. "My designation is Sunstreaker. Now I demand to know the location of Sideswipe and the other Autobots!"

"Dude, I seriously don't—"

"_Frag!" _

To my surprise—and horror—Sunstreaker dropped me from his grasp and I hit the ground, again, with an audible thump. Wasn't falling out of a tree enough, already? I moaned in pain as I rolled onto my stomach. Glancing, I saw that Sunstreaker was kneeling and clutching his metal chest tightly. It wasn't hard to see that he was in obvious pain. He managed to strangle out, "Sideswipe!" before his eyes blacked out and he collapsed completely. Gasping, I got up and ran to him, but his metal armor was burning hot.

"Shit!" I hissed, snatching back my burned hand. Looking back at Sunstreaker, I realized there was nothing I could do to help. How was I supposed to help a freakin' living, three ton, twenty foot tall piece of machinery? Too panicked to even think, I ran to my car without a second glance. This was too much and all I wanted to do was go back to the hotel. Ripping the door open, I jumped into the car, gunned it down the trail and highway, and cried the whole way back.

When I reached the hotel, I made a beeline for my room and locked the door behind me. My face was still stained with tears, but that didn't stop me from pacing the length of the suite.

"Oh God, what am I supposed to _do?_" I murmured."I can't tell anyone about this—they'll send me to the loony bin for sure!" Groaning in frustration, I flopped onto my bed; something jostled within the left pocket of my jeans. Reaching in, my eyes widened as I pulled out the jagged stone I'd found. Taking a closer look at it, I saw that it wasn't even a stone, but a piece of metal. It was probably a piece of Sunstreaker that had come off as he landed. Suddenly feeling sick at the thought that this might have been a _part_ of him, I quickly set it down on the nightstand where my iPod was charging. The alarm clock beside it told me that it was already 1:20 in the morning. All I wanted to do was sleep and I began to feel the effects from the events of tonight.

"Okay Kat, you are going to sleep because you have a parade to perform today." I coached myself. "Now, you have at least ten hours to sleep, two hours to get dressed, and one hour to warm up. Best get started." With that, I reached over and flicked the switch to my bed lamp. As soon as the lights were off, I blacked out.

* * *

><p>(Sunstreaker's POV)<p>

_Uh, Sides? What's happened to you? Never mind, stupid question. Don't worry Bro, I'm here._

My optics came on and my ventilations hissed as I onlined from my emergency stasis. Time was running short and I knew I'd have to find Sides before it was too late. This wasn't the first of my spark attacks… and neither were Sideswipe's. No matter how dampened the bond was, I couldn't ignore the suffering he was going through. After all, it was partly my fault—sort of. If that motherfraggin' glitch of a Decepticon hadn't intercepted our travel route, I wouldn't have accidentally made a right turn at the asteroid belt! Gah! When I get my servos on that slaggin' son of a pylon, he'll wish he'd never been sparked!

Already, the earth's sun was at its highest peak, indicating the middle of the day. Primus, I must have been out for megacycles. Standing on my bipedals, I shuddered at the creaking my hydraulics created. "Well, frag me. Guess that organic femme was right when she said I was rusty." My optics widened. "That femme ditched me! I can't believe an organic, an organic _femme_, ran away and left me on this giant ball of dirt they call a planet! Me—Sunstreaker—abandoned by a fleshling!" Oh, thank Primus that Sides wasn't here to witness this. That's the only good thing coming from this situation; he'd never let me live that down!

Due to the rough landing of my arrival, I was forced to check myself of any physical damages. Nothing too bad, but my comming systems were down and my sensors were damaged. If any Decepticons were roaming this planet, I'd have to pay close attention. There was also the issue of having to get an alternate form for myself in order to protect my protoform. As proven by the screaming from last night's events, these fleshlings didn't take lightly to my kind.

A faint beeping was heard and I pulled out a hologram of my tracking systems. Astonishingly, it was picking up energy and not just any energy, but Allspark energy. It wasn't very far from here and if I follow the energy signature, then maybe, just maybe, I'll be able to find the other Autobots.

"Don't worry Sides! I'm coming!"

* * *

><p>(Kat's POV)<p>

"Ugh. Do I have to wear make-up, Ms. Karl? It's not like anybody's going to pay attention to my face." I whined.

Ms. Karl wore this really scary, dead-pan expression. "That's where you're wrong, Katrina. People want to know who they're going to throw their leftovers at." I stared at her wide-eyed until I saw her lips crack into a smile; we burst out laughing and it only got worse when she snorted.

"Okay, you should head over to float now. The parade's going to start in ten minutes and I'll start rounding up the troops." I shivered.

"Sure. So you want me to sit beside the conductor until Mitch's done, and then I'll stand in his place for my part?"

She nodded. "Exactly. Now go before I have to drag you by your ear. I'm still mad at you for sleeping late even after you promised you wouldn't."

Giggling, I made my way to the parade float and sat by the conductor's stand, waiting for the other munchkins and teens to join me. When I woke up this morning, it was to the ringtone I'd set for Ms. Karl. Boy did she give me the lecture of a lifetime. I didn't even think about mentioning anything on what'd happened last night. My head was still suffering from a massive migraine. Good thing I took the aspirin in my purse, which, was conveniently placed underneath my chair. Events like last night will do that to you. Anyway, everyone was gathering onto the float and finding their assigned seats. It wasn't long until we were all ready and finally off to travel around the theme park. Mitch was fantastic… as always. I didn't have anything against Mitch, but I did envy how he was able to perform vibrato so much better that I could. The way the notes flowed, how he kept the tempo, and how the audience swayed to the bouncy rhythm. He made the music talk and you could practically hear his character of Flynn Ryder feeling overwhelmed while Rapunzel was having the time of her life. It was amazing and Mitch's music only made the image more picturesque. Of course, he did have to eventually finish his piece and bow to the people along with the orchestra.

And then it was my turn.

Shakily, I stood up and took a deep breath while trying to conceal my nervousness from the audience. The group was ready, so I brought my violin—my partner—onto my shoulder and set the bow across the strings, waiting for the conductor as he raised his hands and began counting out the beats; one, two, three, four.

Here. I. Go.

The bases kept the tempo as my violin sung Aladdin's verse. My blood was pumping, but I was ecstatic. I was playing in front of thousands of people… in Disneyland! The adrenaline rush was making me high and soon, I was lost to the world around me. I didn't feel as if anything could ruin what I was experiencing right now and I was eclectic. Jasmine's verse came in and I could practically hear her singing. Apparently, I wasn't going to have any leftover food thrown at me with all the keen faces I saw in the crowd. They were actually enjoying it.

The float continued to move with ease as I moved on to the chorus. We were beginning to pass by the Magic Kingdom and I knew the parade would soon be coming to an end; we would stop when we reached the park entrance.

I held the last note and lifted my bow off the strings when the conductor raised his hands and faced the crowd. I closed my eyes and listened to the note resonate through the air until I heard clapping. Dazed, I opened my eyes and stared at the thousands of applauding tourists. My face split into a giant grin and I waited for everybody to stand before we all bowed. Mitch came over a patted me on the back and Ms. Karl gave me a hug.

In the dressing room, I gathered all of my belongings into my backpack before slinging it on my shoulder. That face-splitting grin was still plastered to my head and I was actually concerned that my facial muscles would never move again. Heading towards the parking a lot, I texted Ms. Karl that I wouldn't be joining the orchestra for dinner at the fancy restaurant they were going to, and told her I'd be in my suite. She texted back that it was fine and told me to go ahead and hit the hay.

As I walked to the bus stop, I was beginning to feel a little unnerved. I dug into my purse for my aspirin…

… But it wasn't there.

"What the hell?" I said while rummaging a bit more frantically for my pain relievers. God, I _need_ them right now!

Startled, I looked up when I heard the strong whooshing noise and stumbled back when I found myself looking into a black hole. I don't even mean a black hole like a sucking vortex in space, but a literal black hole in the air in front of me. I moved forward and around, and found that the black hole looked kind of 2-dimensional. Scared, but curious, I hesitantly reached out to see that my hand was going _inside_. My entire being froze when I touched something…

… Something that was definitely familiar to me.

Uncontrollably shaking, I pulled out my hand from the blackness and found that I'd retrieved my aspirin bottle in my hand. The second my fingertips were out, the black hole shrunk and shrunk until it disappeared completely from sight. The hairs at the back of my neck rose as I heard the running engine of a car behind me.

"You've got some explaining to do, femme." Whirling around, I saw the gold, Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Concept idling in the bus zone. "Let's start with the Allspark energy that I'm reading off of you."

Any trace of my smile was definitely gone by now.


	4. Chapter 4

**Sunstreaker: Why didn't you update sooner? You _know_ you have people waiting for you to continue this story!**

**Me: T.T I'm sorry!**

**Sunstreaker: Tell that to your readers.**

**Me: *sigh* Hey, guys. I'm sorry that I haven't updated as fast as when I started, but I'm getting busy. I know that you've heard that excuse before, but I'm still in school. My original goal was that after the third chapter, I would try updating once a week on Fridays.**

**Sunstreaker: Which also happens to be today.**

**Me: Shut it, Sunny! Can't you see I'm trying to apologize here?**

**Sunstreaker: ... Whatever.**

**Me: Rude. Anyway, I'll be studying for my upcoming exams and CBE tests, but that doesn't mean I won't update. It just means that it won't be as frequent. I decided that if I updated on Fridays, I would have time to write something during the weekend and modify it during the rest of the week. :3**

**Sunstreaker: Okay, enough with the sad and depressing news. Get on with the other business.**

**Me: *ignores* I'd like to congratulate the reviewers who were able to earn a virtual teddy bear! Congrats, guys! Kat was actually using subspace in the last chapter. I'm posting the source of my inspiration of my profile if you'd like to see it. Now on with the story!**

**Sunstreaker: Finally!**

**Me: SHUT _UP! _**

**Sunstreaker: O-O**

**Me: I do not own Transformers. Only my OC.**

Chapter 4

N.E.S.T's captain continued to drive the Chevy Twins mad with his endless pacing. "We should start scouting the area, then search around the town if we don't find anything here. 'Hide, alert Optimus about the radiation. I've got a feeling that something bad is just around the corner." If only he knew how spot-on he was.

"I'm on it," replied Ironhide as he sent the information to Prime.

"This is irrelevant. Why are we at a human theme park instead of searching for a rogue Cybertronian?" Jolt questioned. Being surrounded by so many humans was making the Chevrolet Volt increasingly uncomfortable and beside that, he wondered what they were doing at a place like this at all. "Unless you think they're going to wreak havoc on these innocent bystanders."

Ironhide, disguised as a GMC Topkick, was leading the search team outside the gates, observing the crowd. A celebration of sorts seemed to be the cause of the festive atmosphere, and he watched as the fleshies smiled and cheered. Humans were strange creatures indeed. "We're here because my sensors are picking up big traces of Allspark radiation." Jolt's engine sputtered in surprise.

"Ironhide, are you serious? The Allspark was destroyed!"

"Except for the shard that Optimus retrieved from Megatron's chassis." Ironhide added. His frame heaved in what looked like a shrug. "My sensors do not lie."

Skids took a chance to confront Lennox. "Yo, Will! Will youse quit you's pacin' already? Youse givin' me a glitch in mah processors!" Captain Lennox was too busy worrying to pay attention to the green twin. "Hey, I'm talkin' ta ya!"

Will stopped his vigorous pacing and lifted his head to glare at the Chevrolet Beat. "Not in the mood, Skids."

The red-orange Chevrolet Trax, Mudflap, outright laughed at his twin's misfortune. "Jeez, Lennox, wha's got yo panties in a twis'?" Lennox growled. His partner in crime was the problem.

"It's Rob. He went to the park restroom, but he's not back yet." He sighed and then deeply inhaled the smell of popcorn and churros while listening to the screams of the people on the rides.

"Ahm 'ight 'ere," There was an audible swallow. "Sorry, mouth was full. I'm right here." The Autobots and Lennox tuned to see Chief Master Sergeant Robert Epps munching on a turkey leg. Will stared at it in disbelief. You let a guy use the restroom and what does he do? He comes back with a snack the size of a baseball bat!

"Epps? Man, how can you be eating at a time like this? We've got a possible Decepticon on the loose!" he ranted amused, but unbelieving.

"C'mon Will. We're at Disneyland." Rob grinned. "Don't tell me you don't feel like using your government powers to cut in line at Splash Mountain."

Will's smile was a bit wistful. Of course he wanted to… even if it was childish for a man of his status. "Yeah, but I wanted to do that when I was on vacation with my _family_. Annabelle would have loved it here."

Epps chuckled. "Well don't be so down, man! Once we're through with this, we've got all the time in the world to enjoy the rides and sing-alongs." William laughed at that. "On the plus side, I got you some funnel cake."

"Epps, have I ever told you that you're the best."

"No need, I know." That earned Rob a friendly punch to the shoulder. "What? I'm just saying."

* * *

><p>"What is your designation, femme?"<p>

Kat gulped. "My desig-what?"

She grimaced at his outburst. "Slaggit, your name! What is your name?"

"I-it's Katrina. Katrina Montez."

Fear was snaking its ugly grip on Kat's person while she observed the vehicle idling in front of her. _He doesn't seem very happy_, she thought glumly. _When's the world going to stop picking on me? Haven't I been through enough already? _Sunstreaker was looking rather flashy, his sleek form and glossy paint glinting off the sun's rays and forcing Katrina to shield her eyes from the light. She flinched when he proceeded to throw open the passenger seat door. _Apparently the world doesn't think so._

"Get in. We don't have a lot of time."

Kat had to admit that his order surprised her, but not so much the whole encounter. Nobody goes around seeing aliens land on Earth without a confrontation. She might as well go along with him; he was after all, very, _very_ capable of stepping on her. With great reluctance, she carefully eased herself inside and gently strapped herself with the seatbelt. Good thing she did because he was zooming out of the parking lot before she could even shut the door.

"Jesus! Would you slow down? The cops are going to pull you over!" she hissed. The radio turned on and a snort came through the speakers.

"You can't stop what you can't catch." The speedometer was reading well over eighty and still climbing. The passing scenery was moving too quickly for Kat's eyes to adjust and she closed them, clutching her churning stomach.

"I think I'm going to throw up," she moaned.

Sunstreaker didn't seem to be paying attention. "What are you whining about?" he asked with clear irritation.

"I _said_, I think I'm going to throw up." Sunny didn't have time to deal with the pestering human and gained access to the, in his opinion, poorly set up system of the planet's World Wide Web. Searching for the term "throw up," the results caused him to slam his breaks rapidly, which made his sickly passenger jerk against her safety belt. Katrina's skin pigment was tinged green.

"I swear to Primus that if you vomit your bodily fluids and edibles onto my interior, you're going to have one hell of a ride!" he snarled.

Clenching her eyes even tighter and placing her hand over her mouth, the teenage orphan forced herself to swallow the rising bile in her throat and take deep breaths. Once her gag reflexes had finished their exercise, she opened her eyes to glare at the dashboard.

"You know, I wouldn't have to puke if you'd drive at a more reasonable speed. Take it down a notch!"

"You're not the boss of me, human!"

"Do you _want_ me to ruin your interior?"

"…No."

"Then stop complaining and stick to the city limits." A heavy silence filled the inside of Sunstreaker's alternate mode, but she could feel the deceleration of the car. Feeling her stomach calm down, she relaxed into the seat; her head was still pounding. Kat pulled out her aspirin bottle and shook a tablet into her palm. Dry-swallowing, she exhaled deeply and looked out the window as the headache lessened. She was just getting comfortable when Sunny broke the silence.

"How'd you do it?" she turned her head, confused. Not knowing where to look, she decided to make eye-contact with the steering wheel while she addressed him.

"How'd I do what?" Sunny sighed, which caused Katrina to squeal and squeeze the bottle as his form hoisted up and dropped.

"I'm talking about the object in your hand. You retrieved it from mid-air, now I'm curious as to how you can subspace anything at all." He'd never say it out loud, but Sunstreaker was confused. It was unprecedented, a being other than a Cybertronian being able to have such ability and it left him disgruntled.

Kat's head was tilted thoughtfully. "I'm not sure what subspacing is, but if you're talking about that incident with the black hole, I can't really help you. I've got no clue what happened or how I did that, and I'm completely lost." She felt the vehicle hum as it listened to her every word.

"How do I know you aren't lying?"

Rolling her eyes, she said, "And what reason would I have for lying?"

"You could be hiding something, maybe something about the other Autobots." Sunny began heating up in frustrated anger. "You probably know their exact location! Tell me!"

Raising her hands in surrender, Kat looked away from the wheel and slouched in her seat. "It'd probably be better if I could, but I can't because I really don't know. I wish I did though, so that you'd leave me alone and I could get on with my life."

Silence.

"Let's make a deal then." Eyebrow raised, Katrina looked back to the driver's seat. "I'll give you peace if you help me find the others… and my brother. I'll be your temporary guardian until then. Nothing will harm you."

"And if I don't want to?"

Sunstreaker chuckled humorlessly. "Do you see anybody or anything around us except for vegetation and piles of dirt?"

"Basically, I don't even have a choice, do I?" The teenager grimaced.

"You make it sound so horrible."

"Screw you! I can't believe you're kidnapping me!"

"Oh c'mon, this is an efficient way to get to know someone."

"You know what? Fine, I'll come, but first, I want you to add something to that deal. I promise it's nothing big."

"Just spit it out already."

She huffed. "Rude. I just want you to swear that while I help you find your brother and the others, that you won't let any military dogs take me. Just because I'm an orphan doesn't mean I want to live out on a military base for meeting a real live alien."

Sunstreaker was quiet as he thought about the squishy human's condition. She didn't want to be taken captive by her higher-ups. She didn't want to be forced to live on a base and she didn't want to be questioned about things she didn't even want to be a part of. She wanted her freedom that was taken away the second she saw him in the sky. It made him think how ironic this situation was, how closely it described the war he fought in with his fellow Autobots against the evil Decepticons. Sunny didn't want to admit to this organic that he was beginning to feel a touch of regret, but he did the better option. He agreed.

"You have to take me to my hotel." She stated smugly, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Like frag I will!"

"Do you really want to drive with a human that will slowly become gross and smelly with the same clothes for however long this mission will take?"

"…Situation acknowledged, we'll go to your residing quarters." Kat smirked.

"I thought so, now take this exit and turn left at the stoplight."

Before long, Sunstreaker was parked in front of the hotel and Katrina raced to her suite. She rummaged through her purse for her key card and swiped it, opening the door after it made a buzzing noise in acceptance. Immediately, she got out her duffel bag and began packing all of her clothes. She cursed after realizing she was missing some things.

"Shit. I left my violin and backpack at the bus zone." She'd have to make do without them. She quickly scribbled a note to Ms. Karl, saying that the family lawyer had stopped by and needed to take her back to Reno for more discussions about the family will. Nothing out of the ordinary for Kat since it happened every month. Anxiety was beginning to make her feel uneasy, but she ignored it as she set the note on the bedside table while picking up her iPod, also deciding to pick up the piece of metal that she still thought belonged to Sunstreaker.

Taking one last glance behind her shoulder, Katrina clutched the doorknob and twisted, pushing open the door and sprinting to the waiting Corvette.

_Goodbye old life, hello to level two._

* * *

><p>Arcee followed the captain's orders and continued to search the parking lot while the others dared to venture inside the Disney grounds. In order to keep the secret of the Autobots from so many human observers, Epps was riding atop her disguise as a Ducati motorcycle. Luckily for the man's ego, the children of a few touring families were too excited by the park—with the adults struggling to keep them safely by their sides—to mock the pink bike he rode.<p>

Something caught Robert's attention. "Hey, wait up, Arcee. I think I see something on the ground over there." The femme Autobot slowed her pace.

"What is it?"

"I don't know. We're still too far. Pull up to the bus zone." Arcee gently pulled up to the empty bus pick-up/drop-off. Epps stepped down and took a closer inspection of the items. First was a black instrument case and when he opened it, he was relieved to find that nothing illegal or suspicious—like drugs or weapons—were hidden inside. It was just a normal violin… viola? Eh, never mind. The next item was a backpack filled with a costume, hairbrush, spare change, and women's essentials. Epps dropped the bag while Arcee laughed at his suspense.

"Ugh, I don't care how much training I've been through. That never feels right and it makes me feel like a desperate pimp who wants some action."

"I find you a very respectable man, Sergeant Epps."

Epps gave a smile. "Thanks, Arcee. Do you think you could check these out? It's might be wishful thinking, but maybe there's a trace of Allspark radiation on the clothes and stuff."

"No problem. Would you like me to transform?"

Nobody seemed to be hanging around the back of Disneyland. "Yeah, no one will see you." Arcee transformed from a pink Ducati into her real Cybertronian form. She opened her scanners and nearly stumbled. She shuttered her optics before offlining them, and then onlined them again. Her sensors read the same. Robert noticed her reaction.

"We've got something?"

"Yep, we've got something _big_." Arcee opened a comm link.

**::Ironhide, bring everyone to my location. I think we just found a trail to the shard.:: **


	5. Chapter 5

**Me: Hey guys! I'm sorry I didn't update last week, but Reese had to use the weekend to edit my paper because she got sick and went home early that day. I told her it would be fine.**

**Sunny: But this bumbling idiot of an author included something at the last minute and didn't bother to have it edited.**

**Me: ...Yeah. I added the dream sequence that you guys'll be reading, but Reese wasn't at school at all today either. I'll need to check up on her later and see how she's doing.**

**Sunny: Now, are you going to say the disclaimer or am I doing it?**

**Me: You should do it.**

**Sunny: oOo KitKat oOo, or "KD" as she likes to be called, does not own Transformers. She only owns her OC.**

Chapter 5

Most of the drive to Mission City was quiet and Sunny wanted to make it before his passenger woke up from her stasis. Kat had told him that there'd been a recent terrorist attack on the city, but that she didn't believe it was an attack at all. After he'd briefly explained to her about the Autobots, Decepticons, the Allspark, and the Cybertronian War, she figured that the battle of Mission City actually had something to do with his kind. Katrina believed that the military used the terrorist attack as a cover story to hide the real thing.

They'd been traveling for a few hours now, Sunny slowly accelerating so that his temporary charge would not feel sick. If he kept driving at his current speed of seventy without being caught by the human police, they'd probably make it to their destination by today in the afternoon. And the sooner I find Sideswipe, he thought. The sooner I can get rid of the organic. The night was almost over, the sun beginning to peak above the horizon. As a painter, Sunny was inspired to paint the picturesque sunrise, but his personal opinion of the colors held him back from further exploring the thought.

Red is for the Autobots and purple is for the Decepticons. The two shouldn't be so close together.

Sunstreaker continually tried to make a connection with his twin through their bond, but the results remained disheartening. He couldn't even make a simple comm link if he wanted to because of his damaged systems. The situation was annoyingly scathing.

It wasn't much longer until Katrina woke up from her nap, stretching and yawning. She was comfortably positioned in the backseats of the cantankerous Autobot's Corvette interior. The silence was only too noticeable and being the obstinate person Kat was, she decided to take out her iPod and scroll through her playlist. At first, she was happily bobbing her head to the music, but unconsciously began humming the tunes, surprising Sunny.

"What are you doing?"

Sunstreaker continued to wait for a reply from the human, but when he realized that she was too absorbed in her activity, he was vexed. He'd have to get her attention with another method.

Kat kept humming along to Every Heart by BoA when she felt something poke her. The teenager didn't think anything of it until she felt another slight pressure and while she started to comprehend what was happening, something pinched her.

Hard.

She yelped, "Ouch!" and yanked out her earplugs.

"What are you doing?" an annoyed male voice asked. It was Sunstreaker's, she was sure. Looking to the front, Kat stared dumbfounded at the hot guy whose head was turned to face her over the driver's seat. He had blonde hair that was messily spiked, some strands shading his luminous blue eyes and fiercely refining his already intense scowl. He couldn't be any younger than seventeen, but no older than twenty… and damn was he smokin' hot.

"Sunny?" The seventeen year-old couldn't believe her eyes. She rubbed them furiously, but he was still there when her vision cleared. "Son of a—

"For the last time, what were you doing with that contraption of yours?" She followed his finger where it pointed at her black, iPod Classic. "You were making unreasonable noise. And don't call me Sunny!" Kat huffed in offense and grabbed the object, putting it on pause before she lifted it in front of her and pointed.

"This is an iPod. It's a device that's used to listen to music when you're bored. I thought it was too quiet in here anyway." She poked Sunny's holoform arm. "Now, what's this?"

Sunstreaker rolled his eyes. "This is my holoform. It's an extension of me that's like a hologram, but it's solid as if I were an actual human. If I want to adapt on this dirt ball of a planet, I'll need the upgrade."

"Oh."

"What about the noise?" Her eyebrows scrunched in confusion.

"What noise?"

Sunstreaker's holoform threw his hands up in exasperation before his altmode played a recording through the speakers. Katrina's face flushed when she realized that she'd been humming without knowing. "That noise."

"Um, I was humming. Unconsciously, but that's where the noise was coming from. I usually do it when I'm listening to music." Another moment was spent with Sunny contemplating with his thoughts until he spoke.

"You remind me of Jazz." Profound despondency colored the golden mech's tone. Kat immediately understood what was causing his troubles and decided to confirm it. She cleared her throat and caught his attention.

"You haven't seen them in a while." It wasn't so much as a question, but a bland statement that Sunny grudgingly nodded in admittance. "Well, you'll see them again really soon. I wouldn't have agreed to this whole thing if I wasn't positive of that."

Sunstreaker was thoughtful, contemplating his charge's words with considering. She was for sure that they'd find everyone whether in Mission City or not. For one thing, Sideswipe wasn't dead or else he would've felt it and until he saw his inert and sparkless chassis with his own optics, he would not stop his search. He'd even suffer with the human if he had to! If this organic could believe in that, then so could he!

Smugly crossing her legs on the seat and crossing her arms on top of her lap, the young girl smirked in triumph from the content smile plastered softly on her temporary guardian's face. Without him noticing, she grabbed her iPod, plugged in her earphones, and continued with her activity by listening to Time-bomb by All Time Low.

**"From the get-go I knew this was hard to hold**

**Like a clash the whole thing spun out of control**

**Oh, on wire, we were dancing**

**Two kids no consequences**

**Pull the trigger, without thinking**

**There's only one way down this road,"** Sunstreaker was suddenly pulled out of his reminiscing, listening to the orphan's singing. Kat knew she didn't have the best voice; it was too rough and she couldn't reach the really high notes… but she was too appeased to care.

**"It was like a time bomb, set it in motion**

**We knew that we were destined to explode**

**And if I have to pull you out of the wreckage**

**You know I'm never gonna let you go**

**We're like a time bomb**

**Gonna loose it, let's defuse it**

**Baby we're like a time bomb**

**But I need it**

**Wouldn't have it any other way,"** Surprisingly, Sunny didn't tell her to shut up. He thought it would be better to let her enjoy her peace; although, he decided to do something else.

**"Well there's no way out of this**

**So let's stay in**

**Every storm that comes,**

**Also comes to an end**

**Oh resistance is useless**

**Just two kids stupid and fearless**

**Like a bullet, shooting a lovesick**

**There's only one way down this road,"** To Kat's annoyance, his holoform appeared beside her, hit the pause button, and took her iPod. What stunned her was that he reached over to the front and hooked it up to a port. He dissolved, but reappeared in the driver's seat and cranked up the volume so that the chorus blasted from his speakers.

**"It was like a time bomb, set it in motion**

**We knew that we were destined to explode**

**And if I have to pull you out of the wreckage**

**You know I'm never gonna let you go**

**We're like a time bomb**

**Gonna loose it, let's defuse it**

**Baby we're like a time bomb**

**But I need it**

**Wouldn't have it any other way,"** Both Autobot and human were bobbing their heads to the lyrics, Katrina still singing while Sunny tapped the rhythm along the wheel.

**"Got my heart in your hands, like a time bomb ticking**

**It goes off, we start again**

**When it breaks, we fix it**

**Got your heart in my hands, like a time bomb ticking**

**We should know better,**

**But we won't let go**

**"It was like a time bomb, set it in motion**

**We knew that we were destined to explode**

**And if I have to pull you out of the wreckage**

**You know I'm never gonna let you go**

**We're like a time bomb**

**Gonna loose it, let's defuse it**

**Baby we're like a time bomb**

**But I need it**

**Wouldn't have it any other way,"** Just as the song finished, a disturbing growl filled the car. Sunstreaker looked over, questioningly, with an eyebrow raised. He found that Kat's face was bright red and that she looked at him apologetically.

"That was you?"

"Yeah, I'm kinda hungry," she chirped. "Do you think we could pull over at the next gas station? I've gotta use the bathroom, too."

Before long, the golden Stingray pulled up in front of a simple gas station with a tiny convenient store. The door popped open and Kat rushed inside, entering the store, but stopping at the counter to look at the clock; it read 9:15am. Turning to the clerk, Kat observed that the man was young with a mop of sandy-colored hair. He was loudly popping a piece of gum and was staring back at her with dull green eyes. His name-tag read, "Ricky." She didn't like that he gave her an appreciative once-over, but she tried to politely ignore it while asking him for information.

"Excuse me. How much farther is Mission City from here?" Ricky braced his elbows on the counter, leaning into his hands while he smiled nonchalantly.

"About another two hours. Why's a pretty little thing like you headed over to that terrorist target?" Kat was becoming increasingly uncomfortable.

"I'm just visiting some family, my parents actually. My brother's waiting in the car."

"Are you sure you wouldn't want me to give you a ride instead?" He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. She wrinkled her nose in disgust.

"Do you see that Corvette outside? The gold one?" she pointed out the window and Ricky looked, nodding with an awed expression. "Well, do you see the guy? That's my brother and you really don't want to piss him off." Without another word, Katrina made her way towards the restroom in the back, unaware of a set of red eyes that glinted by the beverages, following her until she was out of sight.

::Starscream, I've found the human.::

::Does she have the shard?::

::No sign of the shard has been indicated, but she is giving off powerful waves of Allspark radiation. Perhaps she has absorbed its energy.::

::Excellent. Very good, Barricade. Capture the fleshling and bring her to me. I want to find a way to harvest her power.::

::Very well. Barricade out.::

Kat made her way out of the restroom, heading for the snacks. After picking out a bag of Doritos and a bottle of Dr. Pepper, she went over to the cash register and purposely ignored Ricky as he rang her up. When he was finished, she grabbed her bag and hurried outside, only to be roughly grabbed by the arm. Startled, Kat looked up at the sneering man whose face was mostly shadowed by his police cap. Black hair peaked out from beneath the cap, but when he lifted his head, she gasped at the familiar red eyes that maliciously stared back at her. This was one of those holoform things, just like Sunny's. Except it wasn't Sunny, but the police car from her dream.

It was the Decepticon.

Her heartbeat wavered for a second before beating erratically and out of control. "Let me go!" She began to struggle against his grip, but he twisted her arms painfully behind her, her kicks not having any affect either. His sneer turned into a lazy grin and he hefted her over his shoulder. Kat gave him one last kick, trying to force all her weight into it.

"I don't think so femme. Starscream would like a word with you." He turned around, but before Kat could summon the will to scream, he halted and she could feel his corded arm muscles tense.

"Put her down, Barricade!" She heard Sunstreaker's threatening voice in front of them, but Barricade blocked her view. She began to pummel his backside more vigorously just as the sound of screeching tires came closer to their direction.

"Nice to see you again, Sunstreaker, but I'm afraid I'll be taking my leave now." With a squeak, Kat was airborne until she roughly landed against hard leather seats. Frantically looking around, she realized she was inside the police cruiser just as the door slammed and the gas pedal floored itself, hurling her to the backseat.

"Frenzy, secure the human!" Katrina was horrified to see a boombox beside her suddenly transform into a Cybertronian drone, making its way to her and brandishing sharp ninja stars in its servos.

"Sit-still! Frenzy-will-punish-if-human-does-not-obey!" he warned.

"Fraggin' mech is right behind us!" Barricade bellowed. "Frenzy, get him off our trail!"

The little Decepticon spy scampered to the passenger seat, where the window had rolled down for him, and changed his arms into mini machine guns, forcing Sunstreaker to zoom left and right in order to dodge the bullets. To say the Autobot warrior was pissed was an understatement. Part of the reason was that Barricade had just taken his charge and was planning to take her to Starscream, and second… Frenzy was scratching his paint! The little slagger was going to pay!

Kat was pounding on the window, trying to escape the killer vehicle and not caring that she'd end up as a stain on the desert road. Static hissed inside the cruiser and she found Barricade's holoform grabbing her wrists and pinning them to her sides. He was glaring at her very darkly.

"Stop kicking! Your attempts of escape are pitiful. There's no way for you to get out."

Katrina glared right back. "Oh yeah? Take this, moron!" Tensing her whole leg, she swung out and kicked her captor where he was most sensitive in his false organic disguise. Suffering greatly, he released his hold on her and Kat took the chance to shove his door open and jump. She rolled for a few feet, scraping every visible area of flesh until she eventually stopped, winded. While trying to regulate her breathing, she heard the noises of shifting metal and angry whirring.

Sunstreaker transformed now that the girl was out of harm's way and went to tackle the police car that had shifted into its bipedal mode, pulling out his twin blades. Barricade spun just in time to retaliate with his own swords, swiping as Sunny continued to dodge. Sunny ducked under one of the Decepticon's slashes and lunged forward, severing one of his Energon lines and eliciting a roar of rage before Barricade charged at him with vengeance. Not very far from the robot death match, Katrina watched and gasped as something was ejected from Barricade's chassis, going unnoticed by her guardian as it came for her. She screamed when, with a flick of its arm, Frenzy released a star and it zipped towards her with a deadly gleam.

Just when she thought it would be deeply embedded within her body, a shadow robbed her of her sight and a loud clang was heard.

"Mudflap, Skids! Take care of Frenzy while I assist Sunstreaker! Jolt, I want you, Arcee, Seargent Epps and Captain Lennox to look after the femme!" The darkness disappeared and Kat caught sight of a metal limb before she was gently picked up and facing troubled blue optics that looked down at her. A blue light scanned her from head to toe before vanishing and an alarmed look filled Jolt's optics when the human in his servo collapsed.

"The human suffers from external wounds and a mild head injury, but no severe damage. She is, however, malnourished and needs nutrition to satiate her in such a weak state."

"Jolt?"

"Yes, Captain Lennox?"

"Is it her?" Will asked seriously. Jolt turned to the Autobots' human ally.

"It is her."

Stars surrounded Kat and prodigiously twinkled around the black space she was seemingly floating within. All at once she felt content and alone, excited and distant, fearless and confused. While her emotions stirred in turmoil, not once did she doubt that everything she'd recently been through was real.

It is all real. The past was real, the present is real, and what will come will be real as well. You must prepare for your destiny, young spark.

The voice was so close, yet so far. It was one voice, but millions at the same time and despite the reassurance it brought, it also sounded dreadful—sorrowful—and that's what scared Katrina the most. One thing was clear to her in that moment.

She was about to find her path, her reason for living, whether she still wanted to or not.

An orb, brighter than any star she could see, floated in front of her. It seemed to dance in a teasing way and the teenager couldn't contain her giggle. She smiled, eyes shining, and reached for it, stroking the white light in a way that caused the light to shudder.

"And what might you be?" she murmured softly. Kat didn't expect to receive an answer.

I am Primus. The ball of light suddenly shot straight up which exploded above her head into trillions of sparks, taking shape into something Kat deemed familiar. It wasn't long until the silver, blue, and white armor of a giant mech floated before her and she was scooped up into a very large hand. She clung to the giant's thumb until she was leveled with golden-colored optics.

"I was the voice resounding within your mind, young spark." He whirred gently. "It is time for your role to begin."

"My role?"

"You, my dear, are the successor of the Allspark. What its powers once were are now yours." Kat lifted an eyebrow in confusion.

"What exactly is this Allspark? Sunstreaker mentioned something like that before." Primus straightened and the scene around them shifted. The black space and stars were replaced with a planet… a planet made of metal. The Cybertronian god lightly placed Katrina upon his shoulder, and then began to proceed forward.

"All will be explained. Let us start with the planet Cybertron and its inhabitants, the Cybertronians."

Katrina listened to every word.

* * *

><p><strong>Sideswipe: Hey, KD.<strong>

**Me: Sides! What are you doing here? You're early!**

**Sides: I decided to see my favorite girl before I hit the stage.**

**Me: You know I'm not having the next chapter up until a week or more, right?**

**Sides: Yeah, I know. Now I can annoy you for a week or more. Someone needs to kick your lazy ass into writing your chapters.**

**Me: ...Love you, too.**

**Sides: I know. I'm awesome.**

**Sunny: What the frag? What about me?**

**Me and Sides: O_O**


	6. Chapter 6

**Me: I'm back! Hope everyone had a Merry Christmas and if you don't celebrate that holiday, Happy Holidays! :D**

**Sunny: You humans and your pointless celebrations.**

**Me: They're not pointless! *bursts into tears***

**Sunny: Uh-oh.**

**Sides: Jeez, bro. Stop treating the little femme like slag! *smacks Sunny's helm***

**Me: Sides, stop!**

**Sunny: *glares* My paint job!**

**Me: Stop fighting! *runs to room***

**Sides: Now look at what you did.**

**Sunny: Shut the frag up!**

**Sides: *sighs* KD doesn't own Transformers, only her OC.**

**Sunny: Sides, she locked the door! **

**Sides: And who's fault is that!**

Chapter 6

"Anybody who is not Prime needs to leave my med bay _now_!" Ratchet angrily shouted. He was very irritated with having so many bots in his working space while he tended to his still unconscious patient. He couldn't work—let alone breathe—with everyone constantly fidgeting around him.

"Look, Hatchet—" Sunstreaker was interrupted by the wrench that struck his helm, frozen in shock before he gave way into simmering fury, "You pit-spawned medic!"

"That was an order, Sunstreaker," Ratchet growled, "Everyone out except for Optimus!" Sunny glared heatedly at the medic before leaving, Arcee, Jolt, Ironhide and the Chevy Twins also making a hasty exit.

Optimus observed Ratchet in silence, noting that his friend had activated his holoform and was dabbing at the young femme's cuts with a cotton ball. Prime followed his example, appearing beside the medic with his own holoform and grabbing a roll of bandages.

"Thank you, Optimus," Ratchet said without looking up from his work.

"What has you so troubled, Ratchet?" asked the Autobot commander. Caught, Ratchet paused in his work and exhaled loudly before wearily facing Prime.

"She's completely laden with Allspark radiation, practically drowning in it." Head tilted thoughtfully, Optimus began to wrap the wounds that had been cleaned.

"But Ironhide had already reported that," he pointed out.

"It's not the radiation I'm worried about, Prime, it's the girl. If Barricade's already made a move to capture her, don't you think the rest of the Decepticons would know about her by now?" Ratchet kneeled on the berth and began to tenderly wrap the femme's head with gauze. "She's in danger, Optimus. I don't like the idea of her leaving the base."

Ah, so that was the problem. Ratchet was worried for the girl's well-being. Truth be told, the Autobot commander didn't like the idea of releasing her unprotected into harm's way any more than his fellow medic, but it was her choice. "I understand, old friend, but we cannot force her to reside with us. She is a sentient being and freedom is her right."

"We could try to convince her. She's already in too deep," Ratchet muttered. "Slag, I hate having innocents being involved with our war!"

"Believe me, Ratchet, so do I. I shall speak with her when she awakens, but I have a feeling that she will be staying with us." Optimus smiled in amusement. "I believe that this was all Primus' doing."

Ratchet's head snapped up. "What makes you say that?" he asked with a bewildered expression.

"Why else would she be unfortunate enough to end up with Sunstreaker?" Prime's comment was followed by silence as the medic continued to stare at him. Ratchet's blue optics shuddered before they both burst into laughter, eventually calming their selves and leaving the med bay to allow the femme to rest.

* * *

><p>(Kat's POV)<p>

_Primus smiled down at me and I couldn't help but return it with a shy one of my own. Um hello, I'm still on his shoulder and I don't know about you, but he's freakin' tall and I do _not_ feel like falling off._

"_Young spark, you are still dreaming." Oh yeah, I forgot that the Cybertronian god could read my thoughts. I laughed nervously and shifted a bit._

"_Sorry, it's just that everything seems so real," I hesitated, but pushed forward. "I'm really going to be the new Allspark, the creator of your race's life?"_

"_Yes, it is your destiny."_

"_Okay." I thought about that. "Primus, knowing that you can read all of my thoughts, I'm guessing that you know everything I've ever thought of too, right?"_

_He seemed considerate. "You are correct."_

"_Then you can understand why I think that sounds very wrong, right?" Now he just looked exasperated. What? You know it's true!_

"_Focus, young spark, you are not being forced to create life," he gently stated, "Your duty is to aid the Autobots in the war. You will discover your—" I interrupted him, surprising the both of us._

"_Wait… I have to live with them? I have to spend the rest of my life on a military base when I clearly told Sunstreaker no? Primus!" _

"_Peace, little sparkling. Freedom is your right and it would be wrong of me to force you into anything, but heed my warning." His voice became grave. "The Decepticons will not rest until you are in their clutches. They will stop at nothing to harness your power."_

"_But they can't harness it, can they?" I was quivering. Maybe staying with the Autobots wouldn't be so bad if it meant certain doom._

"_No, but I'd rather you not suffer at their attempts. Now, before I was interrupted," I blushed and smiled sheepishly while he rumbled in humor. "You will have to discover your powers along the way. You've already revealed one and that is your ability to subspace."_

_I blinked. "Oh yeah, Sunny mentioned something about that. How exactly does subspacing work?"_

_Primus raised his servo and offered me his palm which I stumbled onto before clutching one of his digits. Boy, it'll take a bit to get the hang of these Cybertronian analogies. _

"_The way it works, it means that you can easily manipulate the delicate fabric of your dimension. You can open space pockets at any time and store your needed equipment." I raised my eyebrows in fascination. _

"_So basically, they're like mobile closets that I have unlimited access to." He nodded._

"_Precisely. You just have to keep an open mind and will it."_

_My face split into a giant grin. "That's so awesome!"_

"_Yes, also, I believe that you will need a constant companion."_

"_What do you mean by that?"_

_Primus only smiled and I saw his golden optics flash, also hearing a whistling in the air. I looked around and saw that everything around us was beginning to blur. Cybertron was disappearing before me._

"_It is time for us to part, young spark." I frowned._

"_You'll still talk to me in my head, won't you? I know that sounds creepy, but now that I know I'm not going insane, I'd really appreciate some guidance."_

"_I will guide you," he promised. "Until all are one."_

_I smiled. "Until all are one." _

I woke up panting and laying on a large metal surface, wiping the sweat from my forehead and sitting up to look around myself. I was somewhere like a hospital room, but a lot larger. My body ached and it was only when I looked down that I noticed the bandages; I was covered in them! I even felt at the material wrapped around my head. Sighing, I let my hand drop into my lap again and looked up.

And that's when I saw him.

His blue optics stared down at me with curiosity. His armor was painted silver and he reminded me of someone; he reminded me of Sunstreaker. So this was the cranky mech's twin. I can tell you already that he seemed better tempered than the golden mech.

I bet you guys were waiting for me to scream. Heck, I thought I was going to scream too, but no! All I did was stare at Sunny's twin and smile.

"Hi there, Sideswipe."

* * *

><p>(Sides' POV)<p>

_Awaken, Sideswipe._

My optics onlined and I vented heavily, feeling exhausted and slightly down. Going into emergency stasis will do that to you. My processor even pulsed with a slight ache. I waited until I could regain the sensation in my hydraulics so that I could sit up. When I was able to complete my task, I looked around the med bay.

_Allspark_.

Something caught the attention of my optic and I turned my attentiveness to the medical berth crossways from mine. A blue light, that's what robbed me of my focus. It glowed from the berth and I made my way over to see a femme. She was covered in bandages and her hair was matted, spilling around her and her eyes had dark rings.

But her face was peaceful and for a moment, the blue glow around her flashed gold.

It panicked me when her eyes began to flutter. They opened slowly and revealed dark auburn irises, a dazed expression clouded her face as she sat up and looked around. I held very still. Oddly enough, I felt a thrumming in my spark that I hadn't felt in a while… and my optics widened in realization.

Sunny was on earth! And he was really close. Strange that I hadn't noticed until the female had awakened.

_Allspark._

I refocused my attention on the human femme and it startled me to find that she was already looking at me… and not screaming. She did not struggle nor make a sound; she simply stared if not sitting a little straighter. In fact, she seemed curious, thoughtful, and fascinated all at the same time. She beamed and my optics widened in surprise.

"Hi there, Sideswipe." I was silent for a while thinking, _how in the pit does she know my name._

"Hello, um—"

"Kat," she blurted. "My name's Katrina Montez, but I like to be called Kat. Your Sunstreaker's twin, aren't you?"

Absolutely stunned, I stuttered, "No!—I mean yes!—I mean—how do you know Sunny?" She laughed and her eyes danced.

"He's my temporary guardian." Purely out of reflex, I snorted. _Sunstreaker—a _guardian_? That is highly unlikely no matter how temporary. He's too stubborn of a mech._

"That's what I first thought when we made that deal." Woops. Didn't realize I'd said all of that out loud. I leaned against a counter by the birth and crossed my arms, grinning a bit.

"That's pretty impressive, actually. Sunny's never been one to associate with organics. He thinks they're all filthy."

The girl shrugged. "Oh I don't know. I thought he was pretty easy to negotiate with. You know, after I figured out how to blackmail him with his desperation." I laughed.

"Sunny? _Desperate_? You and I are going to get along beautifully, Kat. Now, how about telling me how you two met."

_Meet the new Allspark._

* * *

><p>Sunstreaker paced in front of the med bay doors, irritated that they were still tightly shut after three hours had passed. Of course, the earlier events of that day didn't hold any favor for the Autobot warrior. He was downright pissed.<p>

"Slaggit all! First Barricade, now Ratchet. Why can't they leave me and my gorgeous paintjob alone?" he ranted. Turning around for the umpteenth time, he smacked right into said medic who held a datapad in hand.

"Easy, Sunstreaker," Ratchet ordered. "I'm going to check on our patient and I think now would be a good time for you to get a maintenance done. We should probably get your trackers and internal communications fixed first." He typed something into his datapad.

Sunstreaker glowered and his engine revved in annoyance. "About time, Hatchet."

Ratchet shot daggers at the golden Corvette. "Stop calling me that! Do you want to see Sideswipe or not?"

Suddenly caught off guard, Sunny froze in complete bewilderment, finally aware of the bond that flowed from his spark. How could he have totally forgotten his twin? Gah, he was going fraggin' insane! Glitching in the processor!

"You know," the CMO continued. "I find it awfully frightening that you happened to acquire the same alternative mode as your brother. It only makes me imagine the horrors you two will be creating on the base." Sunstreaker smirked and leaned against the doors.

"And don't you forget it, Hatchet. We've—hey, watch it!" It was the medic's turn to smirk as he activated the med bay doors and they slid open, sending Sunstreaker sprawling on the tiled floor. Disgruntled, Sunny picked himself up and both mechs made their way inside, picking up on the noise of laughter. Glancing at each other for a brief second, they hurried themselves to the medical berths and were appalled at what they found.

Both patients were wide awake, Kat resting upon Sideswipe's chassis while said mech laughed at whatever she was talking about. They turned their heads to Ratchet and Sunstreaker when they'd entered the room, still smiling until Sideswipe processed who he was looking at.

"Sunny!" Scooping up Katrina with his servo, he got up and deposited her on his shoulder before striding over to his wide-eyed brother. "You've got some explaining to do!" Sideswipe sang.

"About what?" questioned his twin warily.

"Well first of all, I'd like to hear your side of the story," Sideswipe winked at Kat and she blushed. "Oh, and I'm going to berate you about being a terrible guardian."

Sunstreaker was actually, momentarily offended. "I am _not_ a terrible guardian!"

Ratchet, who'd watched the whole exchange, finally spoke up. "What on Cybertron are you talking about?" Katrina was the one who answered.

"Sunflower over there is my temporary guardian." She paused. "Actually, _was_ my temporary guardian. He's home now so the deal's done." Three things happened after that.

Sideswipe started laughing and was clutching his sides, Ratchet started choking on air in disbelief, and Sunstreaker started cursing in Cybertronian. The latter glared at the human.

"Don't call me Sunflower!"

* * *

><p><strong>Me: Hey, guys. Forgot to tell you that I edited this chapter to the best of my abilities, so there might be a lot of errors. I'm not sure. *sniffles* Sorry about earlier. I just hate it when they fight! Anyway, I forgot to mention that I'll have a new poll up and I'd appreciate it if you guys would vote. I had a new idea for another Transformers fic and I'd like to know what you think about it.<strong>

**Sunny and Sides: K, will you open the door please?**

**Me: *ignores* Basically, Wheeljack tests a new experiment by accident and it causes some... complications. I just can't decide whether the Autobots should turn human or shrink into action figure size. I'm leaning more on the shrinking, but I want you guys to voice your opinions. You can vote on the poll that I set up, but I'd really like it if you put your reasoning on a review or PM message. Same goes for if you have any questions.**

**Sunny: C'mon! Don't stay mad at us forever!**

**Sides: Yeah, please! Sunny was just being an asswipe.**

**Sunny: Hey!**

**Me: I told you guys to stop fighting!**

**Sunny and Sides: We will! We'll do anything you want!**

**Me: *pokes head outside door* You will?**

**Sunny and Sides: Yes!**

**Me: *grins* Okay.**

**Sunny and Sides: *exchange nervous glances***


	7. Chapter 7

**Me: Woo-hoo! I got Chapter 7 up today! It feels good to finally have it finished. Sorry guys, but I've got to start my research for my persuasive essay because I put it off for the whole winter break.**

**Sides: You're making the research seem harder than it really is. It's just research.**

**Me: I'm panicking, okay? I've never liked researching when I could be reading a book or writing. *sigh***

**Sunny: So... KD doesn't own Transformers. Only her OC.**

**Me: Sunny, where are my cookies?**

Chapter 7

After a few moments had been spent dispelling Sunstreaker's anger and Ratchet had comm linked Prime about the situation, the quartet were somewhat patiently waiting for their leader to arrive in the med bay. Sideswipe had carefully set his twin's former charge on a berth. It seemed that Katrina found the Autobot medic enlightening and both began to converse lightly, Ratchet patiently and politely introducing himself, much to the twins' surprise.

"It is a pleasure to meet you, youngling. I am Ratchet, the Autobot medic as you may have presumed." He offered the little female one of his digits in greeting.

Returning the gesture, Kat grasped it in her hand and gently shook it. "Call me Kat. It's nice to meet you too, Ratchet."

"Does she have you wrapped around her finger already, Hatchet?" Sunstreaker sneered. Sideswipe noticed that Kat frowned a little at the comment, but she smirked when his twin yelped at the wrench Ratchet had pulled out and now brandished.

He pointed it at the golden mech menacingly. "I'd watch what you say, _Sunflower_," Both Kat and Sides choked on their laughter and silently high-fived one another. "That is, unless you want me to bring out the paint thinner." Sunstreaker narrowed his optics.

"You wouldn't dare."

"I gladly would. I'm pretty sure I saw a couple gallons in one of the storage closets…" Ratchet trailed off evilly.

"Okay! Okay! I'll shut up—just keep that stuff _away_ from me and my paint!" Sunny exclaimed frantically, putting his hands up in surrender and backing away from the medic. He turned his head to scowl at his brother and the human who were just about to explode with merriment.

That being said, things were going a bit smoothly… until a certain weapon specialist walked in.

"Ratchet, is the—"

"Ironhide, you're not supposed to be here!" Ratchet hissed.

"—youngling awake?" Ironhide finished asking, ignoring the fuming medic. Finally spotting her atop the berth, he pushed passed the protesting Corvette twins and whipped out his cannons with a deadly flourish.

"The name's Ironhide. Feeling lucky, punk?" Ratchet lunged at the fragger, but was restrained by Sideswipe and Sunstreaker who silently indicated at Kat and the black hole she was conjuring.

"What the _hell_?" she shrieked. She'd gone deathly pale despite the fact that she was quickly rummaging through the space pocket she'd opened. "Don't you _fucking_ point those at me!"

Gathering all the force she could muster, she winded her arm like a baseball pitcher and flung it towards the offending mech whose cannons were pointed at her incredulously, throwing the object hard enough that it smacked Ironhide right between the optics and hit the floor with a _CLANG, _revealing a wrench to his astonishment. Everyone stiffened and went intensely silent, frozen like statues and as quiet as the dead. The only sound was the heavy panting coming from Kat and all four bots noted how her eyes widened as she processed what'd happened. "I am _so_ dead."

Ironhide tried to see the dent, but ended up crossing his optics instead. Realizing that he was making a bigger idiot of himself, he stopped abruptly and snatched the human in his servo.

"You're going to be nothing but a fleshy pulp when I'm done with you!" he snarled, squeezing his fist a little tighter. Kat let out a squeaked whimper. "I don't see why you're so important." This made Ratchet unfreeze and begin to struggle against the twins, very easily escaping seeing as they were still too stunned to react.

"Her breathing is becoming more labored, glitch-head!"

"Ironhide, you know we don't harm humans!" Surprised, Ironhide dropped Kat at the sound of Prime's voice. Oh, was he in for it now! Sideswipe went in and dived, saving her just a few seconds before she hit the floor.

"What is the meaning of this?" demanded Optimus as Ratchet began scanning the girl for injuries. She was wheezing while he looked pointedly at Ironhide. "Explain."

'Hide crossed his arms and glared at Kat who cringed from the burning intensity of his expression. "The little brat dented my helm."

"Only because you pulled out your cannons on her!" Ratchet retorted. "Was that really necessary? First Sam, now this?"

"I was just messing with her! Where's the harm in that?"

Leaving them to bicker, Optimus approached Katrina in a gentle manner. She was surprised by how much his presence reminded her of the Cybertronian god, the calm, nurturing aura calming her down some. Kat recognized this mech as the regal leader of the Autobots, a descendant of the original seven Primes as Primus had shown her. Her stomach fluttered as Sideswipe placed her gently in his commanding officer's servo. She nervously clutched a metallic digit while meeting Prime's placid stare.

"I am Optimus Prime. Are you alright, youngling?" Kat grimaced slightly.

"I'm fine. Just a few bruises in the morning, but that's it."

"I apologize for the misfortune," Optimus replied. He leveled a 'look' at his weapon specialist. "Ironhide, your actions were completely unacceptable."

"Aw c'mon, Prime." Kat was actually feeling guilty and held a bit of sympathy for Ironhide. He'd only wanted to impress her, just like some of the younger children at the orphanage. She knew his kind of personality; tough and rash, the kind of person who didn't know how to get along with new people, but she also saw the protective, caring side of him for those he was close to. He had the qualities she'd always wanted in an older brother.

She decided to stand up for him.

"Don't get mad at him, sir. He didn't do anything wrong." Kat was very aware of the disbelieving expressions from every bot.

"Didn't do anything wrong? He showed you the business ends of his cannons!" Sideswipe exclaimed.

"And I thought I was mean," Sunstreaker added.

"Yeah, but he didn't blast me to ashes. He was just introducing himself in style." Kat said.

"He had you in a literal death grip," Sides pointed out.

"Because I overreacted," she explained. "I admit that it's always been a habit of mine. A majority of people would've just screamed or fainted. Me on the other hand… I threw a _wrench_ at his _face_."

"It was a pretty reasonable reaction to me," Ratchet muttered. Kat grinned.

"That's because I envied his awesomeness." She saw a corner of 'Hide's mouth tilt up and turned to Optimus. "He saved me from that little Decepticon. He used his hand to shield me from that throwing star."

Prime studied Katrina closely. Never had he met an organic capable of so much compassion. The humans he worked with daily still held fear for him and his men—not including allies like William, Robert, Samuel, or Mikaela. This youngling had only been with them for less than a day—awake for only a few hours. It amazed him how quickly she'd defended one of his kind and from himself, more surprisingly.

His gaze flickered to Ironhide. "I am disappointed in your actions, Ironhide, but I am not angered," he straightened himself. "The others are waiting in the main hangar. Do you feel well enough to introduce yourself to all of us, little one?" He directed the question to Kat.

She nodded. "Yes, sir."

"Very well, then."

Prime exited the med bay followed closely by the others. She noticed how they carefully maneuvered themselves to avoid stepping on anyone. They made their way down the hall until they approached a set of enormous doors, entering a colossal room with a catwalk and metal platform. There were vehicles in the room as well; a Chevy Beat and Chevy Trax, a Ducati, and a Chevrolet Volt. Optimus placed Kat on the platform where she noticed two other people standing there as well. Both were men, one white and the other an African-American.

"Autobots," Optimus rumbled. "Transform."

Kat watched with amazement as the vehicles below her began to shift and change, whirring and clicking as they initiated their true forms. One by one, they stood—a red mech beside another who was green, a blue mech, and a pink female—a femme Cybertronian.

The blue one spoke first. "I see the patient is finally awake." All four focused on her and Kat faltered.

"Hi, I'm Katrina Montez, but I prefer just Kat." She said quietly.

"Nice to meet you, Kat," She jerked and looked behind her at the two men who'd moved closer. The dark-skinned man grinned while the white man smiled at her reassuringly, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. "William Lennox, Captain of N.E.S.T. This is Chief Master Sergeant Robert Epps."

"Kat," she thought the way Optimus said her nickname sounded funny. His voice was just so deep and formal! Maybe it would've been better if her name was Katherine. "I'd like you to meet the rest of my team. This is Jolt. He is also a medic and Ratchet's former apprentice."

The blue mech stepped forward and nodded in the girl's direction. "It is good to see you on your feet."

She smiled. "It feels good, too."

"These are the twins, Mudflap and Skids," Optimus indicated at the red mech and then the green.

"Hey, shawty. Wanna piece o' this?" Skids gestured his servos down his chassis.

Mudflap whapped his brother upside the head. "Hey man! Tha's not cool!" he snapped. "Youse betta not start flirtin'. She's a lady!"

"But bro," Skids whined. "She's gotta hot hourglass bod." He moved his arms in a wavy motion to show his appreciation of Kat's looks.

"Respect the lady," Mudflap retorted. "Respect!"

"Yo, youse gotta chill, bro. She still a sexy piece o' eye candy," Skids winked and snickered at Kat's flushed face.

"That's it! Youse asked for an ass whoopin'!" His twin tackled him and they began wrestling on the floor. Shocked, Kat caught Sideswipe's optics and he shook his helm.

"They give twins a bad reputation." His engine revved in annoyance.

Sunstreaker nodded in agreement, "Idiots."

Optimus, who was pinching the bridge of his nose, vented heavily. He glanced wearily at the pink femme. "Lastly, this is Arcee. She is the only femme among us and hopefully not for much longer."

Arcee stepped forward and looked curiously at the newcomer. Kat hesitantly waved and Arcee formed a smile in return. "You're rather a shy one, aren't you?"

Katrina shrugged nervously. "I always was the introvert."

"Well, Kat, we femmes have to stick together. You wouldn't believe the testosterone and male ego around here."

Those statements made the girl laugh out loud. "Oh, I can't even begin to imagine."

Optimus chuckled. "Let us move on from the introductions and carry on to other matters. Katrina, we think it would be best if you would remain on the base with us."

Katrina lifted an eyebrow. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means," Ratchet cut in, "That we would prefer it if you lived with N.E.S.T for your own safety. It's completely up to you, but no matter what your answer is, you are not leaving my med bay for at least two more days."

She sighed. "Would you believe that this isn't the first time I've had this conversation?"

"It's not?" Ironhide asked. She shook her head and everyone but Sunny seemed surprised.

"She already talked to me about this. We made a deal that if she helped me locate the rest of you, I would offer her protection as her temporary guardian," he paused "I also swore to keep her away from anyone in the military. She didn't want to live on a base."

Everyone took that as an automatic no and before Kat could reply, they tried to persuade her.

"But the Decepticons will be after you!" Arcee cried.

"I—"

"They'd be able to trace the Allspark radiation on your being. They could harm you." Ironhide insisted.

"They—"

"We'd take good care of you. We can get you clothes and food. We'd do anything to ensure that you're comfortable." Lennox pleaded.

"That's—"

"Your parental units would be informed of the sudden move and the government would provide a full monitoring of your household." Ratchet stated.

"GUYS!" Katrina shouted and they all fell silent. Kat took a deep breath and exhaled loudly before she began speaking. She regarded each bot as she pronounced each word slowly.

"I _will_ stay."

"But you said—" Sunny started.

"You weren't the only person I had this conversation with, Sunstreaker." The golden mech fell silent.

"What changed your mind?" Optimus inquired.

Kat gazed at him seriously. "I already know the risks of going home. Besides, didn't Sunstreaker already tell you that I'm an orphan? I don't _have_ any parents and I don't _have_ a real home," she looked at the floor and started to fiddle with her hands. "You _do_ know that I didn't want to stay here at first and I'm still reluctant to, but that's not an option anymore because I'm here to help you win your war. I have to."

Nobody spoke a word and they all exchanged nervous and confused looks with one another. Katrina remained staring at the floor and scuffing the tip of her shoe in mild sadness.

"Why? Why do you have to assist us with our war?" Prime finally asked. "We are not forcing you to. Whether you have no parents or a true home, you are still free to continue your life outside and far away from the base."

"Where is this base located?" Kat questioned quietly.

Epps answered. "We're in a small base branched out from Area 51 in Las Vegas, Nevada. We're only here on a temporary stay while meeting close friends of ours in Tranquility."

Kat lifted her head a little, but still didn't face any of them. "That's not very far away then," she murmured.

"What are you talking about?" Sideswipe demanded.

"The orphanage I lived in is in Reno and that's only a few hours from Vegas or Tranquility."

Optimus stepped forward. "You have not answered my question. Why must you assist us with our war?" he repeated.

_Now is the time for you to tell them, young spark._

"Because it's my destiny," she acknowledged, finally looking at everyone; they all inhaled in shock. Her face was wet and they saw the tears still leaking from her eyes. "Primus said so. I didn't become this for no reason."

"What did you become?" Lennox whispered. More tears leaked from Kat's eyes and she smiled brokenly.

"I'll be staying with the Autobots. I have to and I'm helping them with their war because," she paused as she realized that she was coming to terms with her new life. She wiped her cheeks with the sleeve of her shirt despite the fact that fresh tears still spilled. Her voice wavered.

"I-I'm the n-n-new Allspark."

* * *

><p><strong>Sunny: Here are your cookies.<strong>

**Me: *giggles* I like your apron.**

**Sunny: Don't speak of it!**

**Sides: *pulls out camera* This one's a keeper.**

**Me: *laughs* Anyway, don't forget to keep an eye out for Not So Normal: A to Z Drabbles. It's just a little something to keep you readers occupied while waiting for chapters to be updated. Hope you enjoy it all the same.**

**Sunny: Give me the camera, Sides! *chases Sides***

**Sides: Never! *continues to run***

**Me: Make sure I get a copy! **


End file.
